


Like A Lullaby

by Xarnluz



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2019-02-13
Packaged: 2019-05-19 23:05:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14882919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xarnluz/pseuds/Xarnluz
Summary: A series of short works revolved around Mika and Shu's domestic life, specifically their sleeping habits.





	1. First Night At the Itsuki's

**Author's Note:**

> Bet you thought you've seen the last of me, huh? No matter what I post, just know these two will always be number one.

Mika couldn’t sleep. The room was darker than he was used to, with no dim lights tucked away in corners to help guide half asleep wanderers to the washroom with fewer trampled limb casualties. The sound of the city was nothing but a murmur through the closed window. It unsettled him. No more trees scratching the siding of the building. No snores or gibberish mumbled in his ear. No fingers pinching at his well worn pajamas in the dead of night. It was just him. Unsettling. 

The first evening at the Itsuki’s was nothing but awkward. The Itsuki’s were high-class and intimidating to a boy like him who knew nothing but the streets. It was expected, seeing how proper and elegant his mentor was. They welcomed him and agreed to house him, but Mika still felt he was intruding, like he didn’t belong; and he didn’t. Everything seemed so above him, the social status so different it left Mika with nothing but uneasiness. He had to remind himself that he was brought here, he wasn’t an intruder. There was no power in those words. 

Dinner wasn’t a family sit together like he was used to, with long wooden benches and food passed around and fought over. Instead the food was left on the counter with expensive looking antique plates off to the side. Mika and Shu sat at the table silently while they ate, but the others would file in when they wanted only to grab a plate of food and just as quickly leave. The only noises they made were silverware tapping glass, or when a woman much younger than Mrs. Itsuki let out a small curse after dropping a swipe of butter onto the floor. 

Mika couldn’t remember Shu saying he had siblings. He didn’t recall much of anything about Shu’s home life when he thought about it. Mika hadn’t shared much about his own either, so he didn’t let it get to him. It was just different, being around a family related by blood who were so cold with each other while Mika’s was the opposite, none related, but all full of energy with no turn off switch. 

After dinner, they cleaned off their plates and put them away. Mika washing with such delicate movements, afraid he was going to break a precious heirloom. Afterwards, Shu showed him to his room where his single bag of luggage was shoved in a corner. He pointed out the bathroom just down the hall before returning downstairs to clean the rest of the kitchen while Mika showered before bed. Mika had a long day of packing and traveling, and even longer mental day knowing he was running away. It was for the better. They wouldn’t miss him much anyway. One less mouth to feed, one less throwaway to care for. 

The shower was hot even when he was finished and turning the water off. Usually halfway through washing his body the water would turn lukewarm and Mika had to speed clean. He was able to take his time and thoroughly scrub the day's worries away, scrubbing until his pale skin turned pink. 

With clean sweatpants and a towel around his shoulders, Mika made his way back to his new room. It felt like something he’d see in old western movies. The bed was taller and bigger than back home, tucked in the far corner. Window curtains long and tied to the side with the same subtle floral print that matched the sheets on the bed. The entire house seemed more European than Japanese from the modern fixtures Mika saw and the beige carpeting that started from the stairs and covered the majority of the second floor.

Nestled under the sheets that smelled less of him and more of fresh detergent, Mika stared at the ceiling. He couldn’t see anything except the pitch black of night which made it only more obvious where he was; or wasn’t. Everything was unfamiliar. Eventually he was sure things would get easier. He might be able to make a spot for himself here, if they let him. Shu had already chiseled an opening for him, given time perhaps the walls would crumble and Mika could feel more at ease. Given time, maybe this house would feel more like a home. 

For now, there was only one thing that Mika was familiar with, and that was his mentor. The one who called out to him not once but twice; invited him into his unit, his home, his life. The light that would shine through any darkness. The voice that would drown out all other sounds. Which was why Mika grabbed his pillow and blanket and crept quietly down the hallway. The floorboards creaked as he made his way into Shu’s room, but he heard no tossing from the bed, which meant he didn’t disturb him. 

Slowly he shuffled inside, trying not to bump into anything. Even with his eyes more accustomed to the dark, he was having a hard time seeing. Mika placed his pillow on the floor next to the head of the bed and curled himself in his blanket. The room was just as dark as his own, but didn’t smell like it had been left for years untouched, it was lived in. The slow breathing he heard from above proved it. It was calming. 

Mika didn’t realize he had fallen asleep until he was startled awake with a foot in his stomach. The morning light wasn’t too strong when he cracked open his eyes, window blocked from being on the floor and all. 

“Kagehira! What do you think you're doing?” Mentor’s voice was still rough with sleep, something Mika had never heard before. It made something in his stomach lurch, or maybe that was just from the rude awakening.

“Nnah, sorry Oshi-san. I was turnin’ and turnin’ but just couldn’t close my eyes. ‘Fore I knew it I was already asleep in here.”

Shu ran his fingers through his bed hair and Mika sat up in his blanket cocoon to get a closer look, mesmerized by this side of Shu he wasn’t able to see at school. The light from the window shone directly behind him, making a halo of light surround him. Mika’s first time in his mentor’s room, but he couldn’t take his eyes off him to even glance around. 

“Well, if you’re going to barge in here during the night the least you can do is knock,” Shu stood up and walked over to his wardrobe, Mika’s eyes only falling away to the ground when he started to unbutton his pajama top. “Get off the floor as well. There’s a perfectly fine bed to use, just don’t make a habit of it.”

Mika whipped his head back up at the less than subtle invitation, but didn’t have the chance to ask before he was being ushered back to his own room to get dressed. The first of hopefully many days where Mika could walk to school together with his mentor.


	2. After The Fall

Mika had lost track of how long he’d been home. The live with fine was a catastrophe and had really pushed Valkyrie off their throne. No, they had already been knocked down a peg when they participated in their first dream festival. They weren’t meant to share a stage with humans; humans were unpredictable. No matter how hard his mentor tried to adjust to that pace, to anticipate their steps, recalculate, fine tune, it was only natural for strings to fray when met with resistance. 

The battle with fine was where the final thread snapped. With no strings to manipulate it was only natural for Valkyrie to collapse. Dolls weren’t meant to move on their own. It was why Mika was skipping school; stowed away until his master would return to clean him up. Even that wasn’t working though, because Mika was a failure even at doing nothing. His brain full of moths still worked and it was running itself in circles. 

After being sent away any time he tried to enter Shu’s room, Mika began sitting in the hallway and just listening. At first it was sharp words thrown at the door when his parents asked if he was done acting like a brat. Mika wanted to say something back, but it wasn’t his place. Instead he bottled up his own anger and left it to fester within. 

When the sobbing began Mika felt lost. His mentor had always been strong, listening to no one and head above all. Hearing him as anything but had Mika uneasy. There was nothing he could do to help. He was just a failure of a doll who couldn’t move on his own. He could only wait until his master’s hands were mended, so he too could be fixed and things would return to how they were, if it was even possible.

Ear against the door, and tray of food for two left at his feet courtesy of Shu’s elder brother, Mika let himself drift in and out of sleep listening for faint breathing on the other side. The Itsukis had stopped bothering to check in on them. The crying too had dissipated. It was quiet enough to hear a needle drop. They couldn’t keep going on like this. Soon there wouldn’t be any noise at all. A puppet master turned stiff like the broken dolls he had abandoned. Mika wouldn’t let Shu rot away like he could already feel himself doing. 

While everything was quiet, Mika’s thoughts were only getting louder and bolder. Arrogant to think that a doll could comfort it’s master, to think at all. Maybe Mika really was that much of a good-for-nothing; more human than he should be. All the more reason for him to act. He couldn’t be scolded when he had no strings left attached.

Taking a deep breath, Mika knocked on the door. No answer. Of course not. It was late and Shu hadn’t been answering to anyone for what seemed like years but in reality must have been nearly a week. Knees cracking as he rose, Mika turned the door handle and quietly snuck in. The lamp light was still on and Shu was awake, sitting cross legged huddled in a blanket, panting heavily. 

“Oshi-san,” Mika murmured, not wanting to spook him. It didn’t matter. He wasn’t acknowledged.

He walked around to turn off the lamp, nearly knocking over a half full glass of day old water. Mika placed it farther back and out of harm's way before climbing onto Shu’s bed. Usually he would be reprimanded for it, but still nothing.

“Oshi-san, it’s real late y’know,” he tried again. “If ya don’t sleep yer brain’s gonna turn to mush. Whatcha always tell me anyway…”

Mika too had been skipping out on much needed sleep, far more focused on what could be happening behind that closed door. Living, or barely, on cat naps and small snacks if he felt like eating (he never did). Being able to feel Shu’s presence within reach seemed to sap the last of his energy from him. Like a possessed corpse finally being laid to rest after reaching its target. 

Sitting behind him, Mika placed his hands on Shu’s shoulders, massaging them slowly before wrapping his arms around Shu’s neck, blanket and all. Not even a stutter in breath. Slowly Mika pulled him down until Shu couldn’t keep himself upright and flopped against Mika’s chest, feet curling into himself.

“I think …” Mika hesitated. He might try going back to school. Leave the house and grab the croissants Shu really enjoyed. Just open a window and let fresh air permeate the stagnant world they seemed to be living in. He didn’t know. 

Instead he snuggled against Shu’s back and snaked his arms around the bundle of him, trying to share even a sliver of warmth when the world they had created had turned so cold and barren.


	3. Valkyrie's Rebirth

Mika flopped down onto Shu’s freshly washed comforter. Water still clung to the ends of his hair and dripped down his neck, making tiny wet spots on the once immaculately made bed.

They did a live! With Nazuna-nii! Sure it wasn’t their greatest, and Mika knew he still had a lot to improve on ー he was never going to be on the same level as his mentor ー but the fact that he was able to stand on stage again with the one he revered the most gave Mika such a thrill he didn’t dare dwell on the negatives.

Arms spread wide and face pressed deep into the cream colored blanket, Mika could still hear Shu’s long list of complaints. Mika would practice a million times harder, never be even 0.1 seconds off, be the perfect doll his mentor always drove him to be, honest! Just right that second Mika wanted to stay in his blissful world, their world, where the sun had just started to peek through the dark clouds that drowned out the once blue sky.

“... And honestly what was I thinking! I extended my hand far too quickly,” Shu went on, words losing their sharpness when heard through the cotton barrier. “Yet you met it perfectly. Inexcusable. We saved ourselves of that blunder, but next time we won’t be as fortunate.”

Mika kicked his feet in acknowledgement, breathing in the fresh smell of detergent. It wasn’t a smell he recognized; something new, less floral and more earthy. Like grass on a sunny day, or maybe it was just brought in from outside and it was all in Mika’s head.

Shu never stopped the critique.

“We’ll need to gather resources and start booking more practice rooms. The amount of rust … You need retuning as well.”

Shu unbuttoned his uniform top, folding it before placing it in the laundry hamper. He stretched his arms above his head and Mika watched as his chest filled with a deep inhale. Skin pulled taut to ribs. Their long pause in activities may have attenuated what muscle he had, but Mika knew it was only a matter of time before that soft torso became firm again. Shu exhaled and eyes followed the movement of his shoulder blades shifting when Shu lowered them to rummage through drawers for nightwear. 

Mika took the cue to shed his uniform as well. He did so with none the poise as Shu, rolling onto his back and unbuttoning his fly only to throw his trousers on the floor. He sat up to peel his vest and top off, then laid back down on the bed in only his tight boxers and socks.

Shu didn’t bother reprimanding, far too used to Mika’s sloppy habits. There were some things that would never change no matter how much tuning was done. Fixing the cogs in that head of his was one of them. With a sigh he lifted the comforter, trying to slide his feet under Mika’s head like one would do a cat who slept in the most inconvenient of spots. With a dubious accidental kick to the ear Mika rolled off the bed. 

“Don’t think this failure of a live with make me accept Nito’s decision,” Shu muttered more to himself than Mika. He pulled the covers over his shoulder and sank further into his silk covered pillow. “He’s only defying me with some underhanded scheme in mind. Those children are nothing but toys. A doll has no need for those.”

Mika toed off his socks, kicking them under the bed, and slid under the covers silently. He wasn’t sure what Nazuna-nii was thinking. Mentor treated him far more kindly than himself when they were a unit. Sure there were bad days, but Mika had been happy. Wasn’t Nazuna-nii? He didn’t like the idea of Nazuna leaving Valkyrie behind, but maybe that was their own fault. They had been out of the spotlight for so long, they must have lost fans too. He’d come back to Valkyrie when they got strong again. Mika was sure of it…

He did look kinda happy on stage with Ra*bits though.

Shifting himself until his bare chest pressed against Shu’s curled back, Mika slid his arm under Shu’s to wrap himself around him. This too went unreprimanded; personal space long forgotten between maintenance and Mika’s nursing when Shu’s state was worse than it was now. Then, it was discouraging to not hear Shu’s protests; now it was a comfort. Come morning the nitpicking would resume.

“But Oshi-san,” Mika whispered, tightening his hold on him. “Nazuna-nii’s smile sure was sparkly.”

He own must have been bright too. Being on stage with the ones he loved most, there’s no way his smile wasn’t blinding. Mika was no good at hiding anything. He wondered if Shu had noticed.

Shu struggled within Mika’s grasp. Maybe he read the situation wrong and Shu was more irritated than Mika thought and wanted to be alone. Maybe now that Shu was feeling more like himself, he’d start pushing Mika away again. Mika retracted his arms hoping Shu wouldn’t kick him out entirely. 

Free, Shu turned onto his back, eyes closed but voice still clinging to consciousness. 

“It was beautiful … wasn’t it?”

Maybe one day Mika would hear those words directed at him, exempt from scorn, just pure adoration. For now, feeling the sleek material of Shu’s nightshirt against his bare chest was enough. Feeling those soft hands that always fussed and prodded at him now grab for his own, only to pull his arm over Shu once more was enough. Hearing Shu’s breath slow and even out as he finally succumbed to sleep with Mika draped over him was more than enough.


	4. Resurrection

Mika was exhausted. It was the kind of exhausted that went beyond extreme fatigue. His feet still moved relatively straight along the cobbled walkway up to the house. His hands still worked, or he thought they did until he realized there were 2 keyholes in the door and he kept missing the right one. It wasn't until Shu ripped the key from his hand that Mika's vision cleared up and showed the single lock. His limbs might work because he was a doll with a great master, but his head was definitely in need of repair. Or sleep. 

Sleep, but with lingering endorphins from the tanabata live, Mika wasn't sure he would get that anytime soon. Not with his mind racing at a pace his body couldn't keep up with. The adrenaline was still there. He could feel it coming off Shu in waves as well. The train home Shu hadn't been able to shake the smile off his face. It was faint, but Mika knew all of his expressions; his eyes never left him after all. 

Mika heard the click of the door closing and shuffling of shoes being removed. His came off as well like he was on auto pilot. No, Shu was still there, untying laces and lifting his foot, free hand as high as he could reach to keep Mika balanced. 

"Nnah, I can do this much m'self," he whispered, toeing off his other shoe and placing them in the cupboard. It was late enough that he could see the Itsuki's had returned first. Had the event really taken that long? 

Even still Shu's hand never left him. It was a constant warmth that moved from his upper thigh to the small of his back. Touch firm and unwavering, pressing Mika forward towards the stairs. 

The hallway was dark, but even without Shu's guidance he would have had no trouble maneuvering around in the pitch black. He knew that the 6th step had a dip in the wood that would never be fixed, that the wall stuck out a few centimeters too far at the top of the staircase (that one was learned quick after clipping his toes on the corner twice). 

Quietly they entered the bathroom where Shu took to pulling Mika's practice jersey off. After the performance, not wanting to bother with buttons -- only to go home -- they had haphazardly thrown on their sweats and staggered to make the last train. Now that fatigue had settled in, Mika was glad of the decision. He wouldn't have been able to undo his uniform buttons. He probably wouldnt have had to with how Shu was already raising his arms up to strip Mika of his shirt.

Mika kicked his pants and boxers off into a heap in the corner and sat on the bath stool to begin scrubbing. Water on, he began lathering the floral scented soap over himself. He liked the more heavier musky smells but the delicate rose aroma Shu usually bought wasn't terrible. He liked that their scent was the same. That when they were in bed, nose pressed into pillows, he couldn't discern who it belonged to. 

Mika didn't realize Shu was still there until he felt fingers massaging his scalp. With the mirror fogged up from the heat of the water, only blurry bare legs behind him were visible. 

"Yer spoilin' me Oshisan," he jokingly sighed. Shu's fingers never paused however. They dug deep into the scalp, thumbs rubbing behind his ears and nails scratching at his neck. He let his head fall back to rinse.

"Hush," Shu replied, hands pushing back Mika's bangs and ringing out his tiny mullet. "After tonight's performance I've realized how long I've been neglecting you."

Mika let out a wince.

" 'M sorry I couldn't win, but it ain't yer fau--"

"That's not what I meant." Voice tender where it should be scornful like all the other times Mika had let them down. Instead it was warm, like the hand that now rested on Mika's shoulder as Shu leaned over to turn the shower off. Even after Shu removed it, its warmth lingered. 

Even still when he was coaxed into the tub to soak away the last of the live's tension. Subbing in for Nazuna-nii, trying to keep Tenshouin away from Shu, finally being on stage together with his mentor. Together together. Not like the other times where Shu would help with preparation but in the end not participate. 

This time it was them against their ouster and they were more than prepared to fight back. More than once Mika knew they had caught _fine_ off guard. They played right into Shu's hands, the perfect counterattack. If only the prejudice of the audience hadn't been the deciding factor. 

Head back against the porcelain, Mika let his mind relax. Free from the excitement, the tension. Letting the steam seep into his pores, hot foamy water penetrate his skin. His mind relaxed a tad bit less when he heard water slosh about as Shu slipped in as well. The tub was more European than Japanese with its clawed feet and exposed pipes but even still there was room for the two of them, barely. During That Time when Mika was the one to bathe and nurse Shu, not once did he partake, so sharing such close quarters was a surprise.

It was nice though. Feeling Shu's toes poke at his bare hips while his did the same back was a foreign feeling he could get used to. He let out a sigh to voice how pleased he was.

"Oshisan," he giggled, when a firm grip took his left foot. "That tickles!" 

Shu only hummed as he pressed his thumb into the bridge of Mika's foot. Stretching toes, inspecting his nails. 

"These will have to be trimmed," he muttered before rolling the ankle and bending Mika's leg for any sprains he might have been hiding, dropping the foot unceremoniously back into the tub when Mika wiggled said toes too close to his face.

Mika could feel his eyes droop as Shu went for the opposite foot, repeating the same motions. Flexing his ankle, pulling his leg straight to feel along the underside. His leg hairs had yet to grow back from that morning maintenance. 

Shu, meticulous as always, was too focused on his task that he hadn't realized Mika dozed off until he pulled his leg a bit too far and Mika dipped under the water, shooting back up sputtering. 

Wiping his eyes with already wet hands did nothing to clear his vision, but Mika was sure he caught the look of clear surprise on Shu's face. Eyes wide and face stunned for mere moments before it shifted into a more subtle amused expression. 

Shu braced his hands on the sides of the tub to lift himself out. Mika had seen the view more times than he could count since living in Tokyo, but even seconds after drowning Shu's figure still moved something in him. Skin more porcelain than the dolls he so loved, tight but soft stretched across protruding ribs. Hand stretched out to pull him up, then two when Mika made no move. 

"Come," Shu ordered while pulling him out of the water like a freshly washed ragdoll; Mika nothing but dead weight dangling from his arms.

The transition from bathtub to hallway was a blur. The only thing Mika's mind could focus on was that steady hand at the small of his back. It guided him down the dimly lit hall, gently pushing him past his bedroom to Shu's own at the end of it. 

Shu had him plop on the bed and dried his messy locks. Ragged pajamas magically on. The fact Shu not only let him wear those in his company but dressed him himself didn't slip past Mika. Shu must have been in a really good mood. A shame Mika couldn't keep his eyes open any longer to enjoy it more. 

Instead his body was falling, dangling between the realm of the living and the exhausted. The only anchor being the fingers carding through his hair and even then that grip was slipping and Mika was drifting off. 

"Did you see the look on Tenshouin's face when he realized we had him?" The voice was nothing more than a whisper. "Valkyrie may have lost this battle, but there was no room to question our strength.

"They thought us broken," a pause. The voice was getting farther away even as the heat of the body who homed it came closer. "Perhaps we were. No we were. I was. Now though we will crawl our way back to our throne. Tenshouin underestimated us this time and that was a fatal mistake. These hands will once again weave only the finest stages. The uneducated masses will soon learn who we truly are, if they haven't already been enlightened this evening."

Shu carefully swiped Mika's unruly bangs away from his forehead. Mika already fast asleep.

"You have kept these hands from stopping completely."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still working on this I swear.

**Author's Note:**

> One of those cliche 5 times, and 1 time things. 
> 
> The updates are sure to be extremely slow so I hope that each chapter will be written well enough to be a standalone so no anticipation for the next installment. I'm sorry in advance!


End file.
